"Haa… Haa…"
Now that Kai got a proper look, the so-called monster was, in fact… just a boy.
A terrifying, blood-soaked, goblin-ripping boy, but a boy nonetheless. And right now, he was gasping for air like someone who'd run a marathon through hell.
Kai felt a small flicker of relief.
'Good. Even monsters get tired.'
The others held their weapons steady, tension still thick in the air. But the murderous gleam in the newcomer's eyes had faded, replaced with weariness and guarded caution.
Sensing no immediate threat, the pretty boy eased off, and the rest followed. Sure, this guy had just turned goblins into giblets, but he was still a fellow candidate and a damn strong one at that.
Pretty boy stepped aside, letting the newcomer limp in, every step heavy with exhaustion.
The wind girl and fire girl moved to shut the doors, but just before they closed, Kai caught something slithering at the far end of the hall.
Something crawling toward them.
It was a goblin. Barely moving, dragging its body like a slug in pain.
The wind girl hesitated, noticed it too. Then shrugged and kept closing the doors.
Not every monster was worth the effort.
But for Kai, this moment hit different.
Because the goblin dragging its mangled, bloodied body across the floor, the one that had clearly crossed paths with the human blender who just walked in, was none other than Grub.
It glared at Kai with pure hatred, but all Kai felt was… pity. Just pity.
No smug grin, no middle finger. Not even a sarcastic wave.
He didn't need to. He respected the stubborn ones.
'Poor guy. Just crawl away and disappear. If these people catch you, you're goblin soup.'
And then—
[Congratulations! You have created your first nemesis in this world!]
"…"
'Bastard.'
The door slammed shut.
The others went back to their spots, letting the elite deal with whatever chaos might come next.
Kai noticed the newcomer cast a long glance at Marcus. But Marcus refused to meet it, staring off like the floor was the most fascinating thing in the room.
And that small, seemingly harmless decision, to open that door and let the monster-boy in?
That was the moment the dominoes began to fall.
A butterfly flapped its wings… and a tornado was jut created.
***
It wasn't until half an hour later that the seventeen candidates finally began to calm down.
The first hour in the hall had been hell especially for the Outriders.
Most of them were just kids, tossed into a nightmare of monsters and magic without a moment to breathe.
The kind of kids who'd never even stubbed a toe on real danger before.
But now, after the initial chaos and blood, the heavy doors and high walls of the chamber gave them a false sense of safety.
Like being in a cage was somehow better than being in a jungle.
"So you're telling me you—an Outrider of Death himself—have no idea what this world even is?"
Thomas, Marcus's twin, raised an eyebrow as he leaned against the wall beside them.
Kai, Marcus, and Thomas were camped out at the far end of the hall, far enough to watch everyone else like they were spectators at a very weird zoo.
"Nope. Not a clue."
Kai replied, watching the small, short-tempered girl with the musket scream at some poor kid. She looked like a mafia thug demanding tribute money.
"Not just that," Marcus chimed in, clicking his tongue, "He doesn't even know what an Outrider is. Or a Chosenborn."
Across the room, the musket girl grabbed the boy by the collar and started shaking him like she was trying to get coins out of a piggy bank.
The kid looked like he was ready to cry.
"Typical of Death. Tsk tsk."
A fourth voice cut in.
All three boys turned to see the fire girl—Jasmine—lounging nearby.
One leg up, arms draped over her knee, watching the chaos unfold with all the energy of someone half-bored at a zoo exhibit.
The musket girl had just tossed one poor kid aside and was now zeroing in on a new victim.
"Why the hell are you sitting with us?" Thomas asked, frowning. "Weren't you with that bodybuilder—stupidly handsome, but not as handsome as me—pretty boy? And the wind girl?"
Kai, who'd been listening quietly, realized Thomas wasn't actually that annoying.
Not compared to Marcus, anyway.
In fact, the twins were about equal in terms of irritation, like two flavors of the same overly talkative ice cream.
Still, there was something solid between them—an actual bond, even if they masked it with bickering and one-upmanship.
Case in point: Thomas had stripped off his own pants to give to Marcus, who'd pissed himself earlier in sheer terror.
Now Thomas sat proudly in just his trunks, silently praying another monster wave wouldn't show up and finish stripping him bare.
"Oh, you mean Darius and Lyra? Nah. They're elites. We're not in their league."
Jasmine shrugged casually. She had dark reddish hair, sharp green eyes, and a body that looked like she actually used her gym membership.
Fit, confident and beautiful in a no-nonsense, don't-mess-with-me kind of way.
Kai noted it.
Not enough to swoon, especially not with everyone watching, but yeah, she had her own brand of charm.
"Don't you recognize that boy's power, you idiot?"
Marcus cut in, nodding toward the handsome guy in the center of the room.
A small crowd had gathered around him, hanging on his every word like he was some kind of messiah.
Of course, the holy vibe got instantly derailed when a boy nearby got rag-dolled across the floor by the musket girl.
She was now full-on screaming, pulling at her hair like she'd hit her chaos quota and needed more victims.
Thomas barely glanced over.
"Nah, I was too busy slaughtering goblins with my glorious biceps. Didn't see his magic chains at a—wait! Is that who I think it is?!"
His eyes bulged like a man suddenly realizing he forgot to lock his front door during an apocalypse.
Both Marcus and Jasmine nodded in perfect sync.
"Oh my god! An actual celebrity—other than this lame Outrider!"
Thomas gawked, eyes glued to the golden boy at the far end.
"See that, Kaizen, dear? Now that's a real star."
He didn't mean to be annoying, it just came naturally. His tone had that baked-in whine that made Kai's forehead twitch with a pulsing vein of pure irritation.
"Who is that?"
Kai asked, scowling as yet another poor soul got yeeted across the room.
"That's Jason Thornvale," Jasmine replied offhandedly. "Third son of the late great Maximus Thornvale. Born into the most powerful Sacred Lineage."
There was a flicker of jealousy in her voice that didn't go unnoticed.
'Sacred Lineage?'
That word got registered into Kai's mind.
"Yep," Marcus chimed in, eyes locked on the golden boy. "He's a guaranteed Blight Hunter."
"What's a Blight Hunter?"
Kai's loins tingled at the name alone.
Blight Hunter? Hell yes.
That was some peak anime-tier badassery. His chuuni heart practically combusted with excitement.
Just hearing the title made his pulse quicken. Swords? Dark powers? Cool coats? Whatever it was, it had to be awesome.
But just as Marcus opened his mouth to answer—
WHAM!
A boot slammed into the ground next to Kai's head, missing his skull by a hair. His body froze. A shadow loomed.
Slowly, he looked up...
And found himself staring down the barrel of a musket. Point-blank. Locked. Loaded.
It was her. The tiny menace. The short-stack warlord of chaos herself. Scowling down at him with fury in her eyes and murder on her breath.
"I'm gonna ask you this once," she growled. "And only once. Did you steal my Blood Stones?"
Kai blinked.
"…What the hell's a Blood Stone?"